CO537-4847 — Page 40

SECRET.

VI. TRAVEL: FRONTIER AND PASSPORT FORMALITIES.

Likely Communist Actions

and Policies.

(a) Entry into China for

foreigners will be made very difficult.

(b) The Communists may enforce strict control on Chinese entering China from Hong Kong, and may even refuse to allow them to enter; they may also deliberately expel unwanted Chinese from China into the Colony thus adding to the Colony's over- crowding problems.

Action by Hong Mong.

It

If foreigners are almost barred from entering China then it should be considered whether Hong Kong should make it very difficult for Chinese to enter Hong Kong. The question is however a bigger one. should be made hard for any Chinese from Communist China to enter any British terri- tory. In view of Hong Kong's special situa- tion it may be necessary not to be too rigid, particularly as regards entry from Canton.

It might be desirable, as a first step, to demand valid travel documents for Chinese entering Hong Kong from any place other than Cantom. This would include Chinese travel- ling from all ports north of Hong Kong. This would enable traffic by train and steamer between Hong Kong and Canton to continue without affecting the normal flow of supplies which come to and leave the Colony, particu- larly food supplies.

Later if Communist policy shows itself as unduly difficult, it may be necessary to insist on travel documents from Chine se enter- ing from Canton as well. By the time this stage is reached immigration control into the Colony will clearly have become necessary.

Hong Kong cannot afford to have a one way traffic into the Colony, if there is no return traffic. Immigration control should therefore be strictly enforced. If Chinese are only allowed into China on a selective basis, and if it is made unnecessarily diffi- cult for British subjects and other foreign- ers to enter China, then it should be made equally difficult for Chinese to enter Hong- Kong. In addition to valid travel documents the Hong Kong authorities should insist on a visa issued by proper British Consular authorities. Strict control should be applied to all arrivals by land, sea, and air. When a registration system with identity cards has been fully established in Hong Kong, such control may be easier. New arrivals will be made to take out registration cards as soon as possible, and all without registration cards who have been in the Colony over a cer- tain period should be expelled back into China.

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